Residents are urged to have their say on the Berkshire Minerals and Waste Plan as it reaches its final consultation stage.

Those living in the Wokingham borough can share their thoughts as the Berkshire Joint Strategic Planning Unit has now launched the document.

Issues the strategy plans to cover include:

- Every four months, Berkshire residents generate enough waste to fill Trafalgar Square to the top of Nelson’s Column. Piling waste on the ground is no longer an option environmentally or from a cost point of view – so what can we do with it?

- Government policy says Berkshire has to provide a total of more than 30 million tonnes of sand and gravel over the life of the plan to meet the needs of the building industry, which is enough to fill a queue of lorries 9,000 miles long. Where is it all going to come from?

Gary Cowan, Wokingham Borough Council’s lead councillor for local and regional planning, said: “This is the borough’s last chance to influence the strategy for dealing with minerals and waste in Berkshire over the next 20 years.”

Residents have until Monday, October 27, to express their views to Berkshire Joint Strategic Planning Unit.

A leaflet and DVD about the plan has been sent to all libraries, with a hard copy available to view at Wokingham Library in Denmark Street and at the civic offices in Shute End. Plans can also be viewed at www.berks-jspu.gov.uk.

To receive an electronic copy of the response forms and/or the plans email mineral.waste@rbwm. gov.uk or call 01628 796518 for a paper copy.